Soft drink bottles, beer bottles, and the like are often provided with a screw-cap closure commonly termed a "twist-off" cap. The consumer removes the cap by unscrewing same relative to the bottle. Also, the bottle may be resealed after the cap has been initially removed by screwing it back onto the top of the bottle. In some instances, however, the cap is so tightly secured to the bottle that it is difficult to remove manually without the assistance of a tool, such as tongs or pliers. Additionally, it is not always possible to retighten the cap sufficiently to effectively re-seal the cap on the bottle.
Many beverage cans are presently provided with lift-off tabs. Such tabs include a ring adapted to be manually grasped whereby the tab may be lifted from the top of the can and then pivoted to expose the opening in the top of the can. Such ring-type tabs are difficult to raise off the can top. This is particularly true in the case of men having stubby fingers, women having long nails, and most children, such persons having a problem in inserting their fingers beneath the ring as a prerequisite to its removal. Moreover, it requires manual dexterity and comparative strength to complete the lifting of the tab after it has been raised off the can top.
To solve the problems, there have heretofore been provided openers for twist-off caps having a recess provided with protuberances for engaging the knurls of such caps. Openers of this type are shown in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 261,854, U.S. Pat. No. 3,919,901 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,631,482. To applicant's knowledge, however, there has not been heretofore provided an opener for the lift-off tab of a can, much less a combined opener for a twist-off bottle cap and a lift-off tab of a can.